This was a careful and clever crossword requiring a lot of thought to parse successfully, due to much skilful blurring of lines between the cryptic and definition parts (I particularly liked having to separate, e.g. “nouvelle” from “vague” and “a gogo” from “dancer”), and ingenious touches like “black key” leading to A FLAT, or “two accounts” to ISAAC. Much enjoyed then and many thanks to the setter, who I hope was not too put out by being unable to find a blog on the actual appointed day.
I will make it up to everyone though, perhaps by doing something a bit different with the format of the next one (and no, I don’t just mean posting it on time for a change). See you then!
ACROSS
1 Painter maybe drawing horse after farm animal (7)
HOGARTH – ART H [maybe drawing | horse] after HOG [farm animal]
5 Job entertains teacher, a seeker of fun (8)
HEDONIST – HEIST [job, as in “bank job”] “entertains” DON [teacher]
9 Extract conforming to cyber laws? (6)
ELICIT – LICIT is conforming to laws, and everyone knows you can make anything more cyber by adding the prefix E- to the front…
13 Renovated Milanese abode with bad rating (4-6,6)
ABLE-BODIED SEAMAN – (MILANESE ABODE + BAD*) [“renovated”]
14 Road in Brussels with river receding (6)
AVENUE – EU + NEVA [Brussels, with river], the whole reversed.
Not sure the Neva in NW Russia comes up very often outside of crosswords, but it seems to be above averagely useful in them.
16 Strive to be trained, if not an old retainer (8)
SERVITOR – (STRIVE*) [“to be trained”] + OR [if not]
17 Labour’s gains initially dismissed in Times (4)
AGES – {w}AGES [labour’s gains, “initially dismissed” i.e. losing their first letter]
18 Learner‘s docked mark on translated articles (9)
UNDERGRAD – GRAD{e} [“docked” mark] + UN DER [an indefinite and definite article, translated into French and German respectively]
20 Nothing close to pale, gloomy hue (4,4)
NILE BLUE – NIL [nothing] + {pal}E + BLUE [gloomy]
21 It’s good, say, to be beside fire for poor kid (11)
GUTTERSNIPE – G UTTER [good | say] to be beside SNIPE [fire (gun from distance)]
24 Pulse that’s right to cover in warm batter (9)
HEARTBEAT – R [right], covered in HEAT BEAT [warm | batter]
25 Weakness subsequently seen in eastern lands (8)
ASTHENIA – THEN [subsequently] seen in ASIA [eastern lands]
26 Like poems evenly inscribed in gold discs (4)
ODIC – even letters in {g}O{l}D {d}I{s}C{s}
29 Spiteful woman gets a verse in part of drama (11)
CATASTROPHE – CAT [spiteful woman] gets A STROPHE [a verse]
A “catastrophe” has come to have a new meaning, but it was originally just the denouement of a classical tragedy.
31 Kind of speech I state is maybe Marxist? (11)
DIALECTICAL – DIALECT I CAL [kind of speech | I | state (of California)]
33 Revelatory performer and band are set free (11)
STRIPTEASER – STRIP [band] + (ARE SET*) [“free”]
36 Scientist‘s two accounts about protecting pond life (8)
ISAAC NEWTON – ISA + AC ON [two accounts | about] “protecting” NEWT [pond life]
38 Swell, reaching a high volume (4)
TOFF – differently punctuated TO FF (as in fortissimo)
39 Vehicle sliding in the direction of marsh, horse backing (8)
TOBOGGAN – TO BOG [in the direction of | marsh] + reversed NAG [horse]
41 Compiler, awful on line, is good for the Listener (9)
MELODIOUS – ME [compiler] + ODIOUS [awful] on L [line]
44 Improvement in French and Chinese by setter (11)
ENHANCEMENT – EN [in French] and HAN [Chinese] by CEMENT [setter]
45 Supply troops before spring (8)
RESOURCE – RE [troops] before SOURCE [spring]
48 Person doing wiring interrupted by learner (9)
EARTHLING – EARTHING [doing wiring], interrupted by L [learner]
49 Chilled and laid-back start of month? (4)
ICED – reversed DEC 1 [start of month]
50 Relative breaking ornamental stone in scrap (8)
ABROGATE – BRO [relative] “breaking” AGATE [ornamental stone]
52 Buoyant intro from Offenbach in black key (6)
AFLOAT – O{ffenbach} in A FLAT [black key, on a piano]
53 Two votes by one country? It may lead to bloomers (5-11)
CROSS-POLLINATION – CROSS + POLL [two votes] by I NATION [one | country]
54 Sample tea, speaking with Daisy (6)
TASTER – homophone of TEA [“speaking”] with ASTER [daisy]
55 Fierce old fighter stopped by tough guys (8)
VEHEMENT – VET [old fighter] “stopped” by HE-MEN [tough guys]
56 Performers following itch to do some modelling (3-4)
DIE-CAST – CAST [performers] following by DIE [itch]
DOWN
1 Slow-moving vehicle picks up pace, finally (6)
HEARSE – HEARS [picks up] + {pac}E
2 A gogo dancer’s back covered by grand flowering plant (6)
GALORE – {dance}R, “covered by” G ALOE [grand | flowering plant]
3 Religious scholar to chatter about rising crime (9)
RABBINIST – RABBIT [to chatter] about reversed SIN [crime]
4 Weather that’s wet or hot: remedy is to be prepared (11)
HYDROMETEOR – (OR HOT REMEDY*) [“…is to be prepared”]
5 Hound, or a command he’s given (4)
HEEL – double def
6 From Parisian, fancy Easter egg mix (11)
DESEGREGATE – DE [from Parisian] + (EASTER EGG*) [“fancy”]
7 Flog designer hat that’s not right visually (4-7)
NEAR-SIGHTED – (DESIGNER HAT*) [“flog…”]
8 Small figure‘s fat, eating junk outside of teahouse (9)
STATUETTE – SUET [fat], “eating” TAT [junk], + T{eahous}E
10 Grumpy servants’ clothes, leaving English hotel (8)
LIVERISH – LIVERI{e}S [servants’ clothes, leaving out E for English] + H [hotel]
11 Politician to practise speech, receiving a reason not to? (16)
CONTRAINDICATION – CON TRAIN DICTION [politician | to practise | speech], “receiving” A
12 Lever which could be altered (7)
TREADLE – (ALTERED*) [“which could be…”]
15 Man’s entering a drinking den that’s tacky (8)
ADHESIVE – HE’S [man’s] “entering” A DIVE [a | drinking den]
19 Changing supply lines cheers up one with a large bill (8)
PLATYPUS – (SUPPLY*) [“changing”] “lines” reversed TA [cheers “up”]
22 Solid group of pupils without academic qualities? (8)
THICKSET – or enumerate differently, THICK SET, for a bunch of dim pupils
23 Judge is the one who owns that swish vehicle? (6,2,3,5)
MASTER OF THE ROLLS – which could otherwise humorously suggest somebody in charge of a fancy motor.
27 Half of capital I invested in rate this man has settled (8)
COLONIST – LON{don} I [half of capital | I] “invested in” COST [rate]
28 Problem for looker left out of fashion (4)
STYLE – STY{l}E [fashion, without its L for left]. Looker as in eye.
30 Irish group‘s record set in stone (4)
SEPT – EP [records] “set in” ST [stone]
32 Causing fear, in the manner of end of horror film (8)
ALARMIST – A LA [in the manner of] + {horro}R + MIST [film]
34 Shock or excite public (8)
EXOTERIC – (OR EXCITE*) [“shock…”]
35 Share offer sorts out problem (6,5)
RIGHTS ISSUE – basically a double def, as to “right” an “issue” could be to rectify a problem.
36 Ring part-timer covering for leave in legal institution (5,6)
INNER TEMPLE – INNER TEMP [ring | part-timer] + L{eav}E
37 Erroneously perceiving screen after firm, stern glance (6-5)
COLOUR-BLIND – BLIND [screen] after CO LOUR [firm | stern glance]
40 Have a blowout crossing valley (9)
OVERGORGE – or put a space in the middle, OVER GORGE.
42 Typed text needing to be assessed for academic distinction (9)
DOCTORATE – DOC [typed text] + TO RATE [needing to be assessed]
43 Trendy gossip about Oscar, the last for nouvelle vague (8)
INCHOATE – IN CHAT [trendy | gossip] “about” O, + {nouvell}E
44 Tasteful European wants the glove from Dior? (7)
ELEGANT – E [European] wants LE GANT [the glove, from Dior, i.e. in French]
46 Boy meets girl putting on airs (2-2-2)
LA-DI-DA – LAD [boy] meets IDA [girl]
47 Games enthusiast scoffing a snack (6)
PEANUT – P.E. NUT [games | enthusiast] “scoffing” A
51 Drunk fellow’s first to run from debts (4)
FLIT – LIT [drunk], with F [fellow] first
Ong’ara,
Nairobi.
Cheers!
David R
DOCTORATE – DOC [typed text] + TO RATE [needing to be assessed]
I think “needing” indicates “is to be followed by” and TO RATE is clued by “to be assessed”. As in “this thing is going to rate highly” being equivalent to “this thing is going to be assessed highly”.
The blog being a little late was not really a problem for me.
Anyway, we had a stripteaser and a go-go dancer – woo woo!